Stir Fried Beef, Broccoli and Yams
As I was going through my monthly rip and rape of my cache of food magazines, I was intrigued by this recipe for a couple of reasons: I thought it would photograph well and because it fit in great with the quirky calendar day, Richard Nixon visits China for the first time. I am simply being honest here people. Sometimes the food in our house is not based on what looks good as I am perusing the butcher counter or the produce bins. It isn’t based on what I have in the pantry or what Todd or the Queen might have requested. It is based on the blog and my all important blogging calendar. If I need something orange, that is what we are eating.
That being said (and I would appreciate you not taking me to task for not having this post prepared on Richard Nixon visits China for the first time which was Febuary 21, 1972), this is one of the best stir frys I have had in recent memory.
STIR FRIED BEEF, BROCCOLI AND YAMS from BonAppetit
1/4 cup water
3 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp oyster sauce
1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (I increased to 1/2 tsp)
1 lb flank steak cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into 1/4″ thick slices
1 1/2 tbsp cornstarch
2 1/2 tbsp oil, divided
4 cups broccoli florets
1 yam, peeled, cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into 1/3″ slices
2 tsp chopped peeled fresh ginger
Stir water, brown sugar, oyster sauce and red pepper flakes together and set aside. Place beef in bowl. Season with salt and pepper and toss with cornstarch.
Heat 1 1/2 tbsp oil in large wok over high heat. Add beef mixture and stir fry until no longer pink, about 3 minutes. Transfer mixture back to bowl. Heat remaining 1 tbsp oil in same skillet. Add broccoli, yam, ginger and sauce. Toss to coat. Cover, reduce heat to medium high and cook until vegetables are tender, about 5 minutes. Add beef mixture back to pan. Toss until sauce coats beef, about 1 minute.
The flavor combinations are divine. The sweetness of the brown sugar and the yam combined with the heat from the crushed red pepper danced on your tongue. There was crunch from the broccoli while the beef and yams were incredibly soft. Todd was amazed that it was flank because it was so tender and moist.
I must admit that I have never used yams in a stir fry before. The orange color was the key but I am now a convert. What out of the ordinary ingredient have you added to a stir fry?
Yams in stir fry? GENIUS! I must try this.
A friend was recently rhapsodizing to me about stir-fried golden beets. And come to think of it Mark Bittman semi-recently posted a recipe for “Chinese beets” that I bookmarked…but as yet have done nothing with. So all my tales of unusual ingredients in stir-fry are theoretical, sorry!
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